The ghost experiment
by leggo lover 99
Summary: It's just another casual day.. Yuma wakes up, and falls out of his hammock- oh wait- he doesn't! instead our hero wakes trapped in a room- tied up- with his friends, his key and astral are missing and Yuma senses evil at work - but what will happen! rated T for major character death.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Darkness, it was nice. It was calm, peaceful- no one could pull the teenage duellist from his slumber- not even that annoying ghost, Astral.

"Yuma-"

Then again, Tori could wake him.

Wait! Tori?! What was she doing in his room?!

Yuma snapped awake- then realising his mistake, braced himself for the impact he was about to have from the floor.

Nothing happened.

He wasn't in his hammock, there was a cold metal pressing against his back instead. Where was he?

"Yuma! Are you even listening to me?"

"Yo, Tori," it was Bronk, "What if it isn't Yuma? What if it's a clone, or something?"

"You could be right…" Tori replied nervously.

What were his two best friends on about? Heck, what were they even doing in the same room as him this early in the (what felt like) morning?

The teen's eyes snapped open, and a cry of shock escaped his lips. He was in small, cramped, bare, metal room, and with him, sitting on 6 different chairs- all made of a shining metal, were Tori, Bronk, Kat, Caswell, Flip and Shark.

"What are you guys doing here?!" Yuma yelled, then looking around once more, he murmured to himself, "Yet, where the heck is here?"

"We were hoping you would tell us, Yuma!" a panicked Flip cried, his eyes widening behind his glasses.

"Me?" was Yuma's reply, "How am I supposed to know?"

"Told you that he wouldn't know." Mocked shark frowning deeply in the geeky kid's direction.

Bronk tipped his head to the left, a look of bewilderment crossing his face,

"But Yuma- you _were_ the one to get us in that van."

Now it was Yuma's turn to be confused, he had told the gang to get into a van? That just sounded creepy. Plus, why would he say such a thing?

"You did say something about helping someone called Astral." Kat prompted.

Astral! That was it! He would surely know what had happened. He glanced around him- yet there was no sign of the blue alien. He then looked down at his chest and gasped, his key had vanished- Astral must have been inside! Yuma tried to reach forward to check his pockets- but for the first time- the teen realised that his hands were tied tightly behind his back.

"I'm tied up!" Yuma glared at his friends.

"No-" shark added, "_We're _tied up." He pulled his own arms to prove his point.

Yuma glanced nervously around,

"So no one knows where we are? Correct?" he queried, hiding the panic he felt in his heart.

He was replied by shakes of the heads.

"And no one knows why we're here?"

More shakes.

"And no one knows where my key _or_ Astral are?"

This time there were only 5 negative replies. Tori looked up meekly,

"Tori?" Yuma asked- his heat in his throat,

The girl glanced around, as if checking no one unwanted was in the room,

"I woke just before anyone else- and someone came into the room- they were dressed all in white- like those scientists dealing with nuclear matter,"

Yuma feared that he knew what was coming.

"They came across to you, and took the key. They laughed and said something about an astral world, then left. Yuma? What did they mean?"

Clenching his teeth Yuma replied,

"They meant, Tori, that they've got Astral, they have the key- and with them- they're gonna take over the whole of astral world- the place where Astral comes from."

* * *

**SOOOOO, what do ya all think? it's short- yep- but it's only a starter chapter...**

**What happened to the key?**

**where is the beloved Astral?**

**Where are our young heroes?**

**What will happen next?**

**Who will review?!**

**all reviews deeply appreciated, and I will only carry on with this if I get enough likes, Fav.s and reviews!**

**the cards are in you hands! (But not in a duelling way...)**

**LL99 OUT!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Silence had fallen upon the room in which the 7 teens were trapped, leaving each one wandering deep into their own thoughts.

Yuma's were on Astral. He had only known the ghost for a few months- yet he had become the teen's closest friend. Astral knew everything about Yuma- sometimes even more than he knew himself.

Both of the duellists understood each other's tactics, how their minds worked, what combos they were building up to, and how to boost each other's spirits.

But where was Astral? Where was his key? Yuma only felt whole when he was with the golden key and his friend- but with both missing- he felt as if his soul had been split.

"Hey- Yuma," Bronk muttered to the boy's right- "Have you got a plan? You know- how we can escape?"

Yuma tipped his head to the side- struggling to think of the slightest plan past his worries of his friend.

"We need to get our hands free." Shark sighed from the corner, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

Flip's eyes widened, "Well genius-" he scoffed, "We're all far away from each other- our legs are _tied_ to these _metal_ chairs- and even if we could reach each other- _how_ are we supposed to escape these metal cuffs?!" the smallest of the group raised his trembling voice.

Yuma clenched his jaw in frustration, his instincts making him pull at the handcuffs, which attached his hands to the back of the chair.

"Well?" Tori snapped, "You got us into this mess- so _you_ get us out!"

"ME!?" the spike haired teen replied heatedly.

"SHUT UP!" A voice cut the argument short, "We're not going to escape from here if we argue." Shark glared at the group, "If we jump our chairs together, and get back to back- we can unlock the cuffs quickly."

"But how are we going to unlock them?" Kat spoke calmly.

Shark smiled in reply, "Knock Tori over."

The group all stared at the purple haired boy.

"Are you out of your mind!?" Tori cried.

"Yeah Shark," added Bronk, "What will knocking Tori over achieve?"

"Oh, I think it's a good idea!" Flip interrupted, who had just obviously decided that Tori was somehow to blame for their situation, and earned himself a glare from the girl.

Ignoring the complaints- Shark continued, "If Tori gets low enough- I can pull that hair pin from her head- the use it to unlock someone's cuff, then they can unlock the rest of us."

The gang was stunned into silence. Yuma realised the plan may just work.

He nodded,

"Let's do it!"

"Yuma- I'll unlock yours first Ok?" Shark turned to the others, "Tori- try to rock your chair onto the floor, Bronk, Flip, Kat, Caswell- try and move your chairs over here- you too Yuma."

So began the plan- the teens all jumped their chairs into the centre of the room, while Tori rocked her's onto the floor, causing a hard `thump` and a yelp of pain. Shark had the hardest job out of the group, as he had to twist around, so his hands reached Tori's head.

The group watched on with baited breath as Shark stretched his cuffed hands as far as he could, reaching for the silver hair pin.

Yuma saw that Shark had a trickle of sweat running down his face, his tongue gripped in his teeth, is full concentration. Finally, Sharks pale fingers gripped the clip- the group let out a small cheer of encouragement- but suddenly, the clip slipped.

There was a gasp- but fortunately, Shark reached out and caught it.

The whole room froze.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

"I've got it." Shark sounded surprised- like he had been the one doubting the plan, but for the real doubters- this was like a new beginning- one which was celebrated by cheers.

Then a metallic click filled the room- and all eyes were turned sharply towards one of the wall. At first- it seemed like the others, but after the click- the teens were proven wrong. Hidden in the wall, was really a door, and through that door, stepped a bulky looking guard, with a machine gun, clenched in his hand.

"Shut it you punks!" the man shouted into the room- his voice bouncing off the four walls, "What are you laughing at?"

His gaze switched to Tori who was lying on the floor- shark and Yuma standing above her. The guards eyes widened in mock surprise.

"Bless my soul! Got a chance to feel up a girlfriend- hey lads?!" with one last laugh- the guard vanished back through the door- the lock clicking shut once more.

As one, the teens all turned to Tori.

"1: NOT. A. WORD. 2: EWW. 3: Free us already Shark!" the green haired girl growled, her face a bright crimson.

Yuma started laughing, "Guys- we're going to get out of this! I know we will!"

Shark shook his head-

"Quiet Yuma- we need to keep quiet! These walls are _not_ soundproof."

Yuma shut up.

Shark stretched his hands once more- the clip positioned over the lock on Yuma's cuff,

"Reach towards me Yuma." Shark hissed.

Yuma obeyed the command, and the cuffs drew closer towards Shark.

"Almost, got, it." The purple haired teen strained.

Click.

The group went silent.

THUNK!

The sound of metal hitting the floor was almost deafening.

All heads turned towards Yuma.

The spiked haired teen's eyes went wide, and he stretched his arms out.

A huge smile spread across his face and he jumped into the air, pumping a fist,

"I'm free!" cheered quietly.

"Um- sorry to rain on your parade-" Bronk stated, "but some of us are _still_ tied up."

A blank look crossed Yuma's face-

"Oh- yeah…"

Shark glared, and muttered "Idiot." Under his breath.

Yuma grabbed the fallen clip of the floor, and held it up high-

"Ok- who's first?"

A sudden burst of hushed fighting broke out- with shouts of- "Me!" from each mouth.

Yuma laughed at his friends, then bent down and unlocked Tori's cuffs, getting a smile in return.

He then turned to Shark, Bronk, Cat, Caswell and finally flip.

"Now then-" Yuma grinned- "Let's break out this place!"

Shark's face fell-

"YUMA! NO-"

But Yuma had already stuck the clip into the lock and twisted.

"We're free- oh…" Yuma had swung the door wide open- forgetting the guard from before- and there he stood, a gun in hand- a look of shock on his face- staring down at the teenage boy.

"_There's guards out there…_" finished the purple haired teen finished, groaning.

Yuma didn't need to look round to see his friends' mixture of angry, annoyed and surprised faces, for he could feel their glares deep into his back.

He looked up at the guard,

"Um-" He quickly racked his brain for an excuse, "could we just leave here? I kinda got lunch to get back to…"

Behind him- he heard his friends groan in response.

* * *

**yay! chapter 2 up! soz it took so long- but I kinda had this frech GCSE thing so had to prioritize ):**

**great to be back and updating!**

**ideas people- I love ideas!**

**LL99 OUT!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The group of teens padded slowly and carefully down the corridor- eyes wide in shock, confusion and just checking for more surprises.

They walked in a single file line- mostly shuffling along the floor, with small clinking sounds following them.

"Yuma-" Tori moaned from behind the teen duellist, "I am going to _kill_ you when we escape!"

Yuma turned round,

"Technically- we've already escaped."

"And that did _not_ turn out to well!" shouted Caswell from the back of the line, stopping in his tracks.

Yuma grumbled to himself and took another step- but suddenly- a sharp tug was felt at his ankles.

"Oh not again!" he managed to blurt out, before falling face first onto the floor.

"Yuma!" came several screams from behind him- as one by one- the group was pulled down on top of the teen.

The guard up front turned around, glaring at the group.

"Get up you pests!" he roared, "You're going somewhere you will NOT be able to escape from."

The group struggled to their feet- their bonds getting tangled in the confusion.

Each of the teens had shackles around their wrists and ankles, and were connected by under a meter of strong chain, stopping them from moving easily.

Bronk looked up at the man,

"Does this 'somewhere' have food?" his stomach grumbled in answer, and the butt of the gun came crashing to the side of his head- making him sway on his feet.

"That was for your disobedience." The guard warned- "Next time I won't be so gentle."

Gulping- the teens stumbled forth- following the guard's path.

After around half an hour of slow steady plodding- the group reached a large, metal door that stood ten meters tall.

"Wait here." Was all the man said, as he walked over to the door. He taped some buttons on a console, and a laser beam shot out and scanned the guard's eye, then a small beep was heard as the doors rolled open.

The sight which lay beyond was amazing- fuelling Yuma's hope- for in a glass case at the far end of the room sat the golden key- however- Yuma thought- his hopes sinking back down into his shoes- it was surrounded by five armed guards, and several more were spread across the room.

The room itself seemed like a large holding cell- for the only item- except for the glass case and key- in the room was a large pillar in the centre, with- Yuma gulped loudly- chains bolted to the hard stone.

The guard from before pushed the group inside- waving a hand signal to his comrades- and a guard for each teen came towards them.

"Take each one to the post Murdoe." The original guard demanded, receiving nods from the so called Murdoe and his troops.

The first guard marched over- unlocking Caswell's shackles, and pushing him roughly towards the post. He pulled the teen's arms above his head and chained them into position.

Flip was next- followed by Kat- followed by Bronk- then Tori, then Shark, then finally- a guard came from Yuma. Yuma was taken to the other side of the post- in between Shark and Tori- right in front of the glass case- the closeness of the key taunting him.

From next to him- Yuma heard Shark mutter-

"Yuma- _if_ we escape- I will personally _murder you!_"

Yuma was about to respond- when suddenly- out of nowhere- a horrific pain cut through Yuma's stomach- he opened his watering eyes to see what the guards were doing- but no one was there. Quickly- he stared down at his stomach- to see if he had been shot from afar- yet still- nothing.

Yuma was about to dismiss the pain as a fragment of his imagination- when suddenly- it came back- stronger than before.

And a voice. A voice was speaking to him.

_"Yuma-"_ a scream of agony came from the voice- joined by his own, _"Help- me- Yuma…"_

"YUMA!" Tori screamed from beside the duellist, "What's wrong!" her voice was panicked and Yuma wondered why- when he realised that the scream he heard from himself had been heard also by his friends.

Gasping- beads of sweat trickling down his face- Yuma whispered hoarsely,

"Astral- he's, in, pain- I- need to help him." His voice started to grow stronger- when a bright light burst from the key- hitting Yuma in the chest. A wide grin grew on the duellist's face, and he looked towards the ceiling.

_Astral_- he thought-_ I'm coming for you!_

Then- that's when everything exploded.

* * *

**BOOM! Heh heh heh heh! there's your action!**

**so what was that explosion?**

**ideas people- this story needs some comments!**

**LL99 OUT!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"What just happened?" murmured Bronk, as he stepped over a fallen guard.

Yuma shrugged his shoulders and reached into the shattered case- where his key was glowing softly.

"But Yuma-" Flip cried, "You _must_ know what's just happened!"

Yuma ignored flip and was staring deeply at the key- his eyes burning into the crystal- hoping it would reveal an answer.

It didn't.

Turning around- the duellist glanced at the room- trying to work out himself what had happened.

_Astral- he had thought- I'm coming for you!_

_Then suddenly- a bright light had burst from the key- filling the room. As each guard was touched by the light- they cried out- then collapsed to the floor._

_Next to him- Yuma could feel his friends tense as the mysterious light drew closer- but strangely- as it passed over them- they had felt nothing._

_Then the room around them had faded- a blue face had peered down on them-_

_"Yuma-" it spoke- "I can not hold on- my life force- it is fading- help…"_

_Then the room had reappeared._

_"Who was that!" cried Flip._

_"Astral." Was all Yuma had said._

_Astral's voice came into the teen's head once more-_

_"I have brought you time- use it…"_

_As the voice faded, one final light burst from the key- stronger than the last. It cut straight through the chains- yet not a scratch appeared on the group._

_They were free._

"Yuma?" Tori spoke- disrupting his thoughts.

The spiked haired teen looked at his friend-

"Yes Tori?"

"What happens now?"

Yuma looked down at the key in his hand,

"We find Astral."

The group came over- and crowded around, each one looking slightly confused.

"Yuma- we _are_ in an unknown location- which could be miles long- _how_ exactly do you expect to find Astral?" Caswell pointed unhelpfully.

"You guys can help."

Cat raised a clawed finger-

"Excuse me- but _how_ can _we_ help find an _invisible_ person- which only _you_ can see?"

That- Yuma had no answer for.

Seeing his friends position- Tori quickly thought of something,

"Yuma- why would these people want Astral for?"

Thankfully- the duellist saw where she was going and continued-

"They want Astral as he's from another world!"

Caswell's eyes brightened-

"They would most probably run tests on him," he started- but seeing Yuma's face go pale to hurriedly added, "probably only x-rays or small DNA tests I'm sure. Anyway- they would use a computer- I could find it for you!"

Yuma grinned-

"Perfect! But first- can you send out a code to reach the authorities? We need back up, as we have no clue where we are."

"On it!" he replied- his fingers already flying over a keyboard sticking out of the wall. Thankfully - it was the only one that hadn't been damaged by the blast- almost as if Astral had expected them to use it.

A quick flurry of clicks sounded, then Caswell looked up-

"All done!"

The teens stared.

"That- was… Quick?" Bronk stuttered.

Yuma cut the silence,

"No time for gawping- good work Caswell- but we need to get going-"

He was suddenly cut off by the key. It had started to hum- its crystal glowing brighter by the second.

The voice entered Yuma's head once more- but what concerned him was the fact that Astral sounded even weaker than before.

_"Yuma-" _it strained, _"listen- the key- will lead, you -to me- come quick- I- can not- hold on…"_

_Don't worry- I'm coming Astral. _Yuma sent back in reply- then turned to his friends,

"Don't worry about finding Astral- the key's going to lead us to him."

Blank faces.

Yuma sighed- _I guess I'll just have to prove this_ he thought. Raising the key above his head, Yuma closed his eyes and cried,

"Lead us to Astral!"

The key started to glow- the group's faces lit up it wonder- then- the key faded again.

"Well that was interesting…" Shark muttered, obviously disappointed.

"NO! You were supposed to work! You idiotic-" Yuma screamed at the key- falling to his knees- head down in defeat.

But as the group looked on- Shark saw something.

"YUMA! THE KEY!"

"_WHAT?_" Yuma moaned- the jumped back in surprise.

The key had a single, thin beam of orange light pointing towards the door.

The group looked on confused- but Yuma jumped to his feet instead-

"Come on guys! The light's leading us to Astral!"

A new hope bloomed on the teens' faces, Caswell hit a button on the keyboard- and the far doors rolled open.

"Alright!" Yuma shouted, pumping a fist, "Let's go!"

* * *

**they're on their way!**

**what do ya think?**

**comment please!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

So far the key had been leading the group in a direct path- up what seemed to be the main corridor, but suddenly- it had taken some sharp direct turns- leaving the group complete and utterly lost.

"Yuma?" Tori whispered nervously, "Do you know where we're heading?"

The duellist shook his head, "Not really- but I _do_ know that we're going to Astral."

This did not reassure the rest of the group.

Then the beam of light changed angle once more- pointing down a new hall- this one had white washed walls and white ceramic tiles. Honestly- it spooked Yuma out- goose bumps ran down his arms.

Then footsteps.

And they were growing louder. Someone was coming, and by the sound of it- they were coming quickly.

"Guys- we need to hide." Muttered Yuma, searching for a new path or a cupboard, which would help.

_Go against the wall._ It was Astral.

Yuma heard the footsteps getting closer and realised that there was no escape. He trusted Astral, so quickly told his friends to go up against the wall.

"How in the world is this going to help us?" Flip squawked, "I knew I shouldn't have trusted you!"

Yuma growled back at him,

"Astral's life is at risk- and he told me to get against this wall- do you want a chance of survival or not!"

Flip moved against the wall.

_Please let this work Astral…_ Yuma prayed silently.

As if on cue- the key glowed again- this time, a bubble of light came from it- surrounding the group.

The footsteps came even closer- then- from the shadows a man in a white coat marched forth.

Yuma heard Tori yelp in panic.

"Who's there?" the man ordered, staring straight at them. But a surprising thing happened- the man's gaze flew straight over them, and he carried on walking- slightly more cautiously than before. The group had been turned invisible.

"Must be a mouse…" the group could hear him murmur as he vanished from view.

_There are- no more –enemies- approaching you- they are …with me… hurry._

Astral sounded on the verge of his life force- his voice was that weak.

"Guys-" Yuma turned to his friends- "Astral says there are no more people approaching us- and he doesn't sound good. We need to hurry."

Yuma was surprised at the determined nods he received from his friends, and he smiled. They could do this- Astral would be fine!

"Let's do this thing!" he cheered, and sprinted down the hall- following the beam of light.

Left- right- another right- another left- then the hall started to look like an actual place- with doors and windows. The light angled itself- so it pointed to one of the windows. Yuma stepped up to it.

And couldn't believe his eyes.

"Hey Yuma-" Bronk looked at his friend- "Is _that _Astral?"

He pointed exactly to the ghost.

"You guys can _see_ him?" Yuma stuttered.

That was the point in which Astral turned his head towards the group- and Yuma fell to his knees…

* * *

**DUN DUN DUN!**

**WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO Yuma?**

**WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO Astral?**

**review! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_"Yuma-"_

_"Yuma- get up!"_

_"Yuma!"_

_"What's wrong with him, guys?"_

He could hear the voices- yet Yuma paid no attention. It was like his friends were shouting through a long tunnel- their voices faint and muffled, but he didn't care. Not with what lay before his eyes.

_"Astral…"_ he whispered- his voice barely audible.

But they were too late- Yuma could tell that from the first glance- but why? Astral had been speaking to them on the way- his voice getting weaker- but surely determined.

Now he had lost hope. His two multi-coloured eyes- usually so bright and knowing- now dead and tortured and tortured being the right word, for the ghost was strapped firmly to the white operating table he was laying upon- multiple tubes inserted into his body.

Around the table- there were five 'doctors' who were checking various machines.

There was one more thing that made this scene even more horrific was the fact that Astral had been covered in a violet liquid that- in places- seemed dry and crusted.

Then another burst of pain shot through Yuma's system- causing his eyes to water- and a silent scream to rise in his thought. This was because at the exact same time- in through the glass- one of the doctors had grabbed a small operating knife, and had plunged it into Astral's foot, a thick purple liquid gushing out. Blood.

The ghost opened his mouth- his eyes bulging, and his back arched. No scream could be heard because of the thick glass separating Yuma and Astral.

"Yuma!" his friends cried, seeing Yuma's suffering. They all understood enough about the bond between their friend and Astral, to know how the two were affected by each other, yet none of them realised that they both felt each other's pain.

Shakily- Yuma raised himself to one knee- pushing away his friends' helping hands- and stared towards Astral.

_Astral- it's me- don't give up- I can save you- no- I _will_ save you. Please- just hang on!_

But nothing- no reaction of any sort came from the ghost. His face stayed tortured and blank.

Suddenly- Yuma came up with a plan. It was risky- extremely risky- but with his friends to help- it may just be possible…

"Guys?" the group knelt down next to Yuma- concern written all over their faces, "I have an idea."

As he started to tell- he got a,

"You're crazy!" from flip, a,

"Genius!" from Caswell, and a,

"Purrrr-fect!" from Cathy.

"On my mark- we strike." The duellist muttered, "3, 2, 1, GO!"

The group sprang into action- each teen had grabbed one of the fire extinguishers from the wall opposite, and smashed the glass. Still carrying the extinguishers- the group charged into the room- hitting the so called doctors on the head- knocking them out.

While his friends distracted the doctors- Yuma rushed to Astral's side- reached for the straps holding Astral down- then paused.

"Astral-" Yuma whispered, "How come you're strapped down- you're now solid?"

The ghost opened one swollen eye. It looked around fearfully, then hovered over Yuma's face for a second, before seeming to hear what the boy had said.

"They- sent… an electric pulse- through- the- air- affected… my body…"

Yuma could only stare at the mess his friend had become. Not only had these people been conducting tests- they had been exploring inside Astral by butchering him apart. Apart from the resent injury to his foot- Astral also had large wounds on both arms and a large split down his stomach. He looked terrible.

"Astral- I'm going to get you out of this- I promise."

A smile started to form on the ghost's face- but then it vanished in a wince of pain.

"It- is… too late- for… me- save… your self- Yuma…"

Yuma was about to reply when a scream came from behind. Tori.

The duellist spun around and saw what had happened- a bunch of armed guards had surrounded his friends- Shark and Bronk lay unconscious on the floor.

"Yuma-" came a faint warning from Astral- then something hard hit the back of his head.

Yuma's eyesight faded to darkness- and the last thing he saw was the guard smashing a baton down on Astral's leg- a snap followed.

Then…

Darkness…

* * *

**dun dun dun!**

**poor little Astral...**

**I HAD SO MUCH FUN WRITING THAT!**

**review and send me your ideas!**

**LL99 OUT!**


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